Toy



Nov. 8, 1960 J. L. BONANNO 2,958,979

TOY

Filed Nov. 20, 1956 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 5 A? 85 59 INVENTOR 1 4 (/OSEPA/ABOMQN/VO BY q 1% ATTOR Nov. 8, 1960 J. L. BONANNO TOY 4 Sheets-Sheet 3Filed Nov. 20, 1956 a V m l m 4 U ,n m M R 5 NA w l H M #5 m d Nov. 8,1960 J. L. BONANNO 2,958,979

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Filed Nov. 20, 1956 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR l/OSEP/l A. Bowen/N0.Unitd stats ofiiC P; tented Nov.8,,1960

TOY

Joseph L. Bonanno, South Orange, N.J., assignor to The LionelCorporation, New York, N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Nov. 20,1956, Ser. No. 623,426 4 Claims. (CI. 46-40) This invention relates totoys and more specifically to a novel and improved toy loader forsimulating the loading of a truck trailer or other object on and removalfrom a cooperating transporting vehicle.

One object of the invention resides in the provision of a novel andimproved platform and loading mechanism for loading and unloading toymotor vehicles and trailers onto an improved toy flat ear of the typeutilized in model railway equipment.

Another object of the invention resides in a novel and improved liftmechanism for vehicles, trailers and the like.

A still further object of the invention resides in the novel andimproved toy automotive vehicle and cooperating railroad flat caradapted to receive and support said vehicle.

A further object of the invention resides in the provision of animproved toy trailer of the type adapted to be transported by a motordriven tractor.

A still further object of the invention resides in the provision of anovel and improved toy having a high degree of play value and adapted tosimulate the loading of trailers on railroad cars.

The above and other objects of the invention will become more apparentfrom the following description and accompanying drawings forming part ofthis application.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a perspective view of one embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view of the embodiment shown in Fig. 1 with thebase plate removed;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the base plate assembly;

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the embodiment of the invention shown inFig. 1 to illustrate the operation of the toy for moving trailers from aloading platform to a railroad flat car and vice versa;

Fig. 5 is a cross sectional View of Figs. 2, 3, and 4 taken along theline 5-5 thereof and illustrates certain steps in the operation of thetoy;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary section of a portion of Fig. 5 showing the useof the invention with a different type of standard model railroad track;

Fig. 7 is a cross sectional view of Figs. 2 and 5 taken along the lines7-7 thereof;

Fig. 8 is a cross sectional view taken along the line 8-8 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 9 is a cross sectional view of Figs. 2 and 5 taken along the lines9-9 thereof;

Figs. 10 and 11 are cross sectional views of Fig. 2 taken along thelines 10-10 and 11-11 thereof;

Fig. 12 is a side view of a trailer and a model flat car andillustrating certain details of the trailer to facilitate the alignmentof the lifting mechanism with the trailer to place it on or remove itfrom the flat car;

Fig. 13 is a bottom view of the trailer of Fig. 12;

Figs. 14 and 15 are cross sectional views of Fig. 13 taken along thelines 14-14 and 15-15 thereof;

Fig. 16 is a fragmentary bottom view of the trailer of Fig. 12 with theforward wheels in a tion; and

Fig. 17 is a cross sectional view the lines 17-17 thereof.

Broadly the invention contemplates an improved toy which includes aloading platform having a boom pivotally mounted thereon including meansfor rotating the boom relative to the platform and means for lifting theboom vertically. The platform further includes means for supportingvehicles to be lifted in predetermined positions relative to the boom sothat the latter can be adjusted to engage and lift the vehicle or otherobject from the loading platform onto a carrier such as a railroad flatcar or other similar vehicle arranged and coordinated with the loadingplatform. While the invention is illustrated herein in connection withthe loading of model trailers onto model railroad flat cars, it is to beunderstood that the invention may be used for other similar purposes.

Referring now to the drawings, 10 denotes a raised platform having setsof depressions 11 and 12 adapted to receive the Wheels of a trailer 13or other similar vehicle. The loading platform further includes a pairof ramps 14 for moving the vehicles onto the platform surface 15 and apair of controls in the form of a hand wheel 16 and a lever 17 foroperation of the boom or lifting mechanism 18.

A simulated loading vehicle 18 is disposed centrally of the platformsurface 15 and comprises a body 19 and an outwardly extending boom 20.As will be shown the rotation of the wheel 16 will rotate the vehicle 18and its boom 20 about a pivot so that the boom can be adjusted to engagecooperating elements on the bottom of the trailer 13. When this isaccomplished movement of the lever 17 is moved to raise the boom 20 andlift the trailer 13 whereupon the hand wheel 16 can again be operated totransport the trailer body onto a railroad fiat car 21 or other similarvehicle. As shown in Fig. 1 one trailer 13 is in position on the flatcar and the boom 20 is in position preparatory to picking up a secondtrailer 13 and transporting it into position on the flat car 21.

The structure of the vehicle 18 and the mechanism for operating it isshown more clearly in Figs. 2, 3, 4 and 5. More specifically the topsurface 15 of the platform 10 is provided with an opening 22 having aperipheral flange 23 to form a journal or bearing for a tubular shaftmember 24. The lower end of the shaft member 24 carries a drive disc 25having a ribbed or knurled edge portion 26. The drive disc is fixedlysecured to the tubular shaft 24 and the latter carries on its upper sidean angle bracket having a first leg 27 secured to the shaft 24 and asecond leg 28 integral with the said first leg and extending upwardlytherefrom. Rotation of the disc is accomplished by a horizontal shaft 29journaled in the wall 15 of the platform 10 and carrying on its outerend the wheel 16. In order to limit longitudinal displacement of theshaft 29 it is provided with a lock washer 30 which engages acooperating groove on the shaft. This groove is disposed just inside ofthe wall 15 so that the wheel 16 and the lock washer 30 limittranslation of the shaft. The inner end of the shaft 29 is held in ahorizontal position by a pair of downwardly extending guides 31 andcarries on its inner end a friction sleeve 32 of rubber or otherresilient material. This sleeve is held firmly against the knurled edge26 of the drive disc 25 by a flat spring 33, the latter being pivoted onone end to a boss 34 extending downwardly from the underside of thehousing (see Figs. 2 and 7) and then extends beneath a supporting rib 35forming part of the platform is held in firm engagement with the drivedisc 25 so that retracted posiof Fig. 16 taken along 10. With thisarrangement the friction sleeve 32 3 rotation of the hand wheel 16 willimpart rotation to the angle bracket 27-28.

The boom 20 is fixedly secured to the top of a tubular lift column 36that has an outside diameter somewhat smaller than the inside diameterof the hollow shaft 24 and the boom 20 is further provided with a pairof rearwardly extending fingers 37 that are adapted to engage the edgesof the upwardly extending leg member 28 when the lift column 36 is inposition in the shaft 24. In order to support and guide the lift column36 an angle bracket member 38 is secured to the leg 23 by a screw 39 orother suitable means with one leg 40 extending over and beyond thecenter of the tubular shaft member 24. A vertical shaft 41 is fixedlysecured to the leg 40 of the bracket member 38, extends downwardlythrough the lift column 36 and engages a cooperating opening in the baseplate 42 as will be observed in Fig. 5. With this arrangement it will beseen that the boom 20 is provided with firm support and can bereciprocated on the shaft 41. At the same time the fingers 37 of theboom 20 will impart rotation to the boom as the hand wheel 16 isoperated.

In order to simulate realistically an actual mobile lifting mechanism,an ornamental body 19, simulating an automotive tractor, is secured tothe leg 40 of the angle bracket 38 by means of a suitable screw 43 androtates with the boom.

Vertical displacement of the boom 20 is accomplished by a levergenerally denoted by the numeral 44. This lever is carried by the baseplate 42 and has a pair of upwardly extending ears 45 pivoted tocooperating ears 46 formed on the base plate 42. In the instantembodiment of the invention the pivot comprises a pin 47 that extendsthrough both sets of ears. The inner end 48 of the lever 44 is providedwith a bifurcated end portion 49 that rests on the plate 42 and engagesthe bottom end of the lift column 36. The outer end 50 of the lever 44is displaced upwardly and engages a lever 51 formed integrally with thecontrol 17 and pivoted to a pair of downwardly extending bosses 52 onthe underside of the platform by means of a pivot pin 53. With the baseplate 42 held in position on the platform by the engagement of a pair ofears 54 with cooperating openings 55 in the back side of the platform 10and with the screws 56 extending through slots 57 in the platform 10 andengaging ears 58 on the base plate 42, movement of the lever 17 willoperate the lever 44 and move the boom to the raised positionnotwithstanding its angular position. In this way raising and loweringthe boom 28 can be accomplished wholly independently of its rotation.

The instant embodiment of the invention is adapted to be used inconnection with model railway equipment for the loading and unloading oftrailers onto a flat car as shown in Fig. 1. In order to coordinate theplatform 10 with conventional model railroad track generally denoted bythe numeral 59, the base 42 is provided with a pair of brackets 60pivoted to the base at 61 as shown in Fig. 3. These brackets each have arecess or cut out portion 62 adapted to receive the nearest wheelbearing rail 59 as shown in Fig. 5. In this way the track 59 isaccurately located with respect to the platform 10. This arrangementfacilitates the positioning of the toy relative to the track since thebase 42 can be disengaged from the platform 10 and screwed to a mountingsurface by means of mounting openings 63 with the track 59 engaged inthe recesses 62.

The trailers 13 forming part of this invention each comprise a body 63simulating the body of an actual van type trailer and a removable top orroof 64. In order to hold the top 64 in place it is provided with a pairof side flanges 65 and end tabs 66 and 67 which frictionally engage theinner surfaces of the wall of the body 63'. The rear wheels 67 of thetrailer are supported by a pair of downwardly extending tabs 68simulating the spring suspension of an actual vehicle and a piece offlexible tubing 69 extends transversely of th b and eng cooperatingopenings therein. The wheels 67 are held by an axle 70 passing throughthe tubing 69 and cooperating openings in the wheels 67. The outer ends71 of the axle 70 are upset to retain the wheels in position. In orderto facilitate the assembly of the rear wheels it is preferable tofabricate them of a resilient material such as rubber, plastic, or thelike so they can merely be forced over the upset portion 71 of the axle.

The front wheel or support assembly 72 for the trailer is pivotallymounted for retraction as in the case of an actual trailer. This frontsupport assembly simulates a pair of wheels 73 and cooperating jacks 74and these elements are formed integrally with a transverse cam member 75and outwardly extending pivots or trunions 76. The assembly 72 ismounted on the trailer by engagement of the trunions 76 with cooperatingrecesses 77 formed on the underside of the trailer body and it is heldin place by a leaf spring 78 secured to the body at 79 and having anS-shaped conformation 80 on its outer end for engagement with the cammember 75. With this ar rangement the wheels cannot normally be movedforwardly but can be snapped to the rearward position as shown in Fig.17 when the trailer is to be transported by a tractor. For presentpurposes the front support assembly 72 is normally retained in theextended position to support thetrailer without the need for a tractor.

The spacing of the wheels 67 and 73 of the trailer are coordinated withthe recesses 11 and 12 on the top sur face 15 of the platform 10. Therecesses 11 are made large enough to accommodate the rear wheel 67 andthe edges of these recesses are tapered as shown in Fig. 11. Therecesses 12 are of somewhat smaller dimensions to' accommodaterelatively small wheels 73 and the configuration of these recesses isshown in Fig. 10. Since all of the edges of the recesses are sloped therecesses will function to properly align the trailer on the platformsurface 15 once it is placed in an approximate position.

In order to provide a firm engagement between the boom 20 and a trailer13 when the latter is to be lifted, each trailer is provided with fouropenings or recesses 81 and the outer end of the boom 20 is providedwith a pair of spaced bosses 82 having conical or tapered upper ends82'. With this arrangement when the boom 20 is rotated in its loweredposition beneath a trailer it is aligned with diagonally disposedrecesses or openings 81. When the boom is raised the bosses 82 willenter these openings and firmly engage the trailer so that it can betransported by rotation of the hand Wheel 16. Through the use of fourrecesses 81, the trailers 13 may be lifted from either position on theplatform 10.

The transporting flat car 21 is of conventional construction butincludes improved means for engaging the wheels of the trailer 13 tohold it on the surface thereof. More specifically, the flat car body 83has an elongated central member 84 having a width corresponding to thewidth between the front and rear sets of truck wheels. The ends of theflat car are provided with transverse members 85 that extend beyond thefront wheels 73 of the trailers and a transverse U-shaped member 86bridges the central portion of the car body 83 to engage the rear wheels67 of the trailer. Thus when the trailer is placed on the flat car asshown. in Fig. 1 the trailer is held in place against both longitudinaland transverse movement and the flat car will hold two trailers 13 inback to back relationship.

Figs. 4 and 5 illustrate the operation of the toy. In Fig. 4 it will beobserved that one trailer 13 is in place on the flat car 21 and a secondis in position on the platform 15. To place the second or right handtrailer on the flat car the boom 20 is rotated to a position whereinthebosses 82 are in line with the openings 81 in the bottom of the car13. This is accomplished by rotation of the hand wheel 16. When properalignment is obtained by the alignment of the edges of the boom 20 withmarkers 87 on one side or the other of the trailer the lever 17 isactuated to raise the boom and lift the trailer. The hand wheel is thenoperated to move the boom over the flat car 21 whereupon the lever 17 isslowly returned to its original position to lower the trailer onto theflat car. Fig. 5 shows a fragmentary section of a trailer 13 denoted bythe letter A in a raised position over the flat car 21 and in thelowered position B.

In conventional model railway equipment different heights of track areavailable with higher track being shown in Fig. 5 and the lower trackshown in Fig. 6. With this invention and the novel and improvedarrangement for supporting the boom 20 adequate elevation can beimparted to the boom 20 to accommodate both types of track and withoutmodifying the acessory in any way.

From the foregoing description it will be observed that the alignedposition of the flat car 21 is coordinated with the platform and theposition of the vehicles 13 thereon so that the vehicles 13 whether onthe fiat car or platform are in the same angular positions relative tothe pivotal axis of the boom. The platform and fiat car positions of thevehicles 13 are actually separated by an angle of approximately 90though it is apparent that other angular separations may be utilized.

While only one embodiment of the invention has been shown and described,it is apparent that modifications, changes and alterations may be madewithout departing from the true scope and spirit of the invention asdefined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A toy railroad accessory comprising a loading station, said loadingstation including a platform, vehicle positioning and holding means inthe top face of said platform located in alignment with the wheelpositions of a toy vehicle, a toy vehicle positioned on said platformand having wheels positioned in said vehicle positioning and holdingmeans, a substantially vertical shaft rotatably mounted on saidplatform, said shaft being vertically reciprocable, a lifting deviceaffixed to the upper end of said shaft, above said platform, saidlifting device including a rigid outwardly extending lifting boom, handoperated means connected to said shaft to rotate said shaft, and handoperated means to reciprocate said shaft vertically to elevate and lowersaid lifting device, a track structure adjacent a side of said loadingplatform for positioning a flat car thereon, said lifting boom beingmovable through an arc intersecting the location of said vehicle in aposition to lift said vehicle and to a location extending beyond theedge of said platform and overlying said track.

2. A toy railroad accessory comprising a loading station, said loadingstation including a platform, at least four recesses defined in the topface of said platform in locations in alignment with the wheel positionsof a toy vehicle, a toy vehicle positioned on said platform and havingwheels positioned in said recesses, a substantially vertical shaftrotatably mounted on said platform, said shaft being verticallyreciprocable, a lifting device affixed to the upper end of said shaft,above said platform, said lifting device including a rigid outwardlyextending lifting boom, hand operated means connected to said shaft torotate said shaft, and hand operated means to reciprocate said shaftvertically to elevate and lower said lifting device, a track structureadjacent a side of said loading platform for positioning a flat carthereon, said lifting boom being movable through an arc intersecting thelocation of said vehicle in a position to lift said vehicle and to alocation extending beyond the edge of said platform and overlying saidtrack.

3. A toy railroad accessory according to claim 2, wherein said platformis elevated and including an access ramp connected to said platform.

4. A toy railroad accessory according to claim 2, including anupstanding protuberance at the end of said boom, and a concavity formedat the underside of said vehicle complementary to said protuberancewhereby the protuberance on said boom may be fitted into the cavity ofsaid vehicle for lifting of said vehicle.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 49,901Lombaert Sept. 12, 1865 1,849,877 Lyons et al Mar. 15, 1932 1,929,447Remde Oct. 10, 1933 2,209,359 Stevens July 30, 1940 2,290,844 Smith July21, 1942 2,311,123 Osborne Feb. 16, 1943 2,438,603 Erhardt Mar. 30, 19482,602,266 Preston July 8, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS 391,150 Germany Feb. 29,1924

